Vancouver Canucks Push On With Dad Strength And Support As J.T. Miller Takes Leave

Dad Strength is a thing in the NHL. Players often perform above their usual standards when they become new fathers.

On Tuesday in Vancouver, Conor Garland showed some Expectant Dad Strength when he got the Vancouver Canucks fans chanting his name at Rogers Arena.

"He's going to probably have a baby here soon," said Canucks coach Rick Tocchet after the game. "Was up at three in the morning. Was up again at seven. No sleep, and our best player. What can you say? You love the kid."

Running on adrenaline, Garland led all Vancouver forwards with 20:58 of ice time in the Canucks' 4-3 loss to the New York Rangers. Late in the second period, he also scored a key goal to make the score 3-3, blasting a feed from linemate Dakota Joshua past Igor Shesterkin.

The assist was Joshua's first point of the year in his fourth game back in the lineup since returning from surgery to treat testicular cancer. It's a sign that the chemistry that the pair enjoyed last season, along with Teddy Blueger, could start to bubble up again as Joshua returns to his top form.

On Tuesday, the pair skated with Pius Suter, while Blueger played with Danton Heinen and rookie Jonathan Lekkerimaki.

After Tuesday morning's announcement that J.T. Miller is taking a personal leave of absence from the team, it was all hands on deck against the powerful Rangers, who improved to 12-4-1 for the year and 7-1-0 on the road with Tuesday's win.

No official reason has been given for Miller's absence aside from personal reasons. Tocchet tried to quell speculation after the announcement was made — and also declared that the situation is not related to Miller's benching in the third period of Vancouver's 5-3 loss to Nashville on Sunday.

Even though Miller had 16 points in his first 17 games this year, he hasn't sizzled with the same highlight-reel energy as last season. And after the Canucks' no-show in their 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders last Thursday, he pointed the finger squarely at himself after the game.

"I've got to speak on behalf of myself as a leader," he said. "I'm just going to try to be better next game, I guess. No point in being negative right now. I wasn't good."

Allvin said the team's sole focus is ensuring Miller knows they're all there to support him.

Related: Canucks Announce J.T. Miller To Take Indefinite Leave For Personal Reasons

Miller's absence comes while the Canucks players have been dealing with a list of other challenges. But Joshua has made his return, and the prognosis is getting more hopeful for Brock Boeser and Thatcher Demko.

"We're going to have some bodies coming back," Tocchet said. "I don't know whether it's a week, two weeks. Some all-star people, that's going to help."

Boeser has now missed six games after Los Angeles Kings left winger Tanner Jeannot hit him in the head on Nov. 7. Demko is working his way back from a mysterious knee injury that knocked him out of last spring's playoffs after just one game. Both players are now back on the ice, suggesting their returns are getting closer.

During last year's breakout campaign, the Canucks were a pretty healthy bunch, especially for the first half of the season.

"I don't think anyone missed any games," said Quinn Hughes. "So sometimes it's just the way it goes. You get good bounces and bad bounces."

Last season's most notable absences were 18 games for Joshua starting in late February, with a hand injury, and Demko's first knee injury in March. That caused him to miss 14 games before he got hurt again in the playoffs.

But the Canucks are hardly alone in dealing with this adversity. Big stars are missing time across the NHL, whether it's Auston Matthews in Toronto, Connor McDavid in Edmonton or, now, even the Russian Machine that never breaks, Alex Ovechkin, who's week-to-week with a lower-leg issue in Washington.

"I think in one way, it brings us closer together," said Elias Pettersson. "What everyone's going through, we're always going to have each other's back. And there's no difference with the news we got today. We're always going to have each other's backs and whatever happens, we're just going to be there for each other."

Tocchet sees the challenges making his group stronger.

"I thought there was a step," he said Tuesday night. "I thought guys played harder tonight. Certain guys, I thought, played harder, which is a good thing that we need from them. You use fuel — people that doubt you, or the noise. To me, it's stuff that I love. That's what galvanizes a group, so, take that energy that we have in the room."

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